With free agency on the horizon, Josh Bynes just wants “a team to have faith” in him

The Cincinnati Bengals should be gearing up for a relatively active offseason.

After shocking the world and being big spenders in 2020 along with adding Joe Burrow, the Bengals have a few obvious holes on their roster. However, before they address them, it’d be nice to ensure they return many of the impactful veterans hitting the open market.

One of those is Josh Bynes, who had a career year in his first season with the Bengals.

The 6-foot-1 linebacker was a leader for this relatively young defense. Recording a career-high 99 tackles, Bynes quickly showed his value. Bynes also played in all 16 games which is notable.

As the league enters the free agency period in the next few weeks, Bynes will have a hard decision to make.

“For me, it’s just to continue playing this game. Let me go out there and continue to show that I can play this game to the fullest potential. This’ll be my 11th season coming up, and I still have a lot left in the tank and I want to play as long as I can. I want a team to have faith in me knowing that I can go out there and play each and every game like it’s my last. And I showed that this past season in all 16 [games] and stood strong. I know I’m capable of doing that this coming season and going forward another season, so I just can’t wait to finally figure that opportunity out either with Cincy or with another organization in the next few weeks,” Bynes said.

It seems as though Bynes is open to a return to Cincinnati. Despite only winning a handful of games and coming in last place in the AFC North, Bynes doesn’t seem like he immediately wants to find a new home.

Moreso, it seems he’ll be motivated more by the size of his contract and role on the team than having the infrastructure of a Super Bowl-contending team. The Bengals should be a drastically improved team this coming season, and Bynes should be able to get the best of both worlds in Cincinnati.

The two sides need to agree on what he could be worth first. Bynes is coming off a one-year, $1.65 million deal. It’ll be interesting what offers he’s given after having a solid season relatively late in his career.